Female Singers Dazzle in 2011

Music fans may remember 2011 mainly as the year Amy Winehouse died, but the last 12 months have seen several other divas dominate the international music press for happier reasons.

Veteran British songwriter PJ Harvey, soul singer Adele and American newcomer Lana del Rey all produced songs or albums that won wide critical praise.

Perhaps the most notable of these was Harvey's "Let England Shake," which provided a fitting soundtrack for a year that saw Britain's worst riots in decades.

According to the website Metacritic.com, which monitors reviews across 80 English-language publications, Harvey's eighth studio album was the year's best.

It took Harvey, one of indie rock's most enduring and distinctive female voices, three years to research and record "Let England Shake."

Filled with political references, anti-war sentiment and influenced by her discussions with Afghan women and other sources, the album provided critics -- especially those in Britain -- with plenty to talk about, and Harvey's record won this year's Mercury Prize for best British album.

"England did indeed shake this year to the sound of riots, protests and distant wars," The Guardian wrote. "No wonder, then, that PJ Harvey's raw yet meticulously researched record hit a nerve."

Critics across the pond also feted Harvey, though the hugely influential indie and alternative music site Pitchfork.com placed her album fourth in a list of the year's best. Top place went to the self-titled album by American progressive folk group Bon Iver.

Adele, the 23-year soul powerhouse from London, released her second album "21" to high praise from fans and critics alike.

Billboard, Rolling Stone and Time all voted "21" the year's best album, which already has sold more than 12 million copies.

Adele was forced to cancel several performances after undergoing vocal cord surgery from which she is expected to make a full recovery.

2011 was also a memorable year for rookie songstress Lana del Rey.

Though her debut album, "Born to Die", won't be released until January, her first single "Video Games" has already been endlessly blogged about, viewed on YouTube, remixed and parodied.

Notably, though, the sultry New York singer's single was also voted best song of the year by the NME, The Guardian and other publications.

In Britain, one of the UK's highest-selling albums was Winehouse's "Back to Black."

The diva's second and final album was originally released in 2006 but saw a sales surge after her July 23 death from alcohol poisoning.